Board Report September 2025

5. The student must agree to follow all conduct rules and the coaches’ instructions. 6. The student and his or her parents/guardians must provide written consent to random drug and alcohol testing pursuant to the Extracurricular Drug and Alcohol Testing Program. 5 7. The student and his or her parents/guardians must: (a) comply with the eligibility rules of, and complete any forms required by, any sponsoring association (such as, the Illinois Elementary School Association, the Illinois High School Association, or the Southern Illinois Junior High School Athletic Association), 6 and (b) complete all forms required by the District including, without limitation, signing an acknowledgment of receiving information about the Board’s concussion policy 7:305, Student Athlete Concussions and Head Injuries . 7 The Superintendent or designee (1) is authorized to impose additional requirements for a student to participate in extracurricular athletics, provided the requirement(s) comply with Board policy 7:10, Equal Educational Opportunities , and (2) shall maintain the necessary records to ensure student compliance with this policy. The footnotes are not intended to be part of the adopted policy; they should be removed before the policy is adopted. 105 ILCS 5/22-15 requires (with limited exceptions) each school district having grades 9-12 to maintain catastrophic insurance coverage for student athletes who sustain an accidental injury while participating in interscholastic athletic events sanctioned by IHSA that results in medical expenses in excess of $50,000. A district maintaining grades K-8 may, but is not required to, provide accident and/or health insurance on a group or individual basis for students injured while participating in any school-sponsored athletic activity. For more information see sample policy 4:100, Insurance Management . 5 Optional; delete if the district does not have such a program. Be sure this provision is consistent with policy 7:240, Conduct Code for Participants in Extracurricular Activities , and administrative procedure 7:240-AP2, Extracurricular Drug and Alcohol Testing Program . The Seventh Circuit upheld the constitutionality of a high school’s random drug testing program for students involved in extracurricular activities in Todd v. Rush County Schools., 133 F.3d 984 (7th Cir. 1998). 6 Participants in an IHSA-sponsored or sanctioned athletic event are subject to testing for banned substances. For a list of banned substances, the testing program, and other related resources, see the IHSA Sports Medicine website, www.ihsa.org/Resources/SportsMedicine/PerformanceEnhancingDrugsSteroidEducation.aspx. T he sponsoring organization’s rules/bylaws/policies control t ransgender student participation in extracurricular athletic activities. See: 1. IESA Policy and School Recommendations for Transgender Participation at: www.iesa.org/documents/handbook/IESA-Policies.pdf; 2. IHSA policy #34, Policy and School Recommendations for Transgender Participation , at: www.ihsa.org/About-the-IHSA/Constitution-By-laws-Policies; and 3. SIJHSAA Transgender Participation Policy at: www.sijhsaa.com/images/stories/pdf/TRANSGENDER_PARICIPATION_POLICY_Revised_10-17-18.pdf. For further information on accommodating transgender students, see PRESS sample administrative procedure 7:10-AP1, Accommodating Transgender, Nonbinary, Students or Gender Non-Cconforming Students . See also two Ill. State Board of Education non-regulatory guidance documents entitled Supporting Transgender, Nonbinary and Gender Nonconforming Students and Sample District Policy and Administrative Procedures , at: www.isbe.net/supportallstudents. Federal administrations have taken varying positions on whether transgender students can compete consistent with their gender identity; consult the board attorney for guidance on this evolving area of law. 7 IHSA eligibility information and required forms are available at: www.ihsa.org/Resources/Download-Center. A district must include information concerning the board’s concussion policy in any agreement, contract, code, or other written instrument that the district requires a student athlete and his or her parent(s) or guardian(s) to sign before participating in practice or interscholastic competition. 105 ILCS 5/10-20.54 and 23 Ill.Admin.Code §1.530(b)(1). The Sample exhibit form 7:300-E1, Agreement to Participate , contains the requirements in this policy. In addition, the student and student’s parent/guardian must sign a form approved by IHSA acknowledging receiving and reading written information on concussions. 105 ILCS 5/22-80(e). The IHSA website contains many helpful resources, e.g.: 1. www.ihsa.org/Resources/Download-Center (see consent form under subhead Sports Medicine Forms) 2. www.ihsa.org/Resources/SportsMedicine/PerformanceEnhancingDrugsSteroidEducation/IHSAPerformanceEnhan cingSubstancePolicy.aspx (performance-enhancing drugs) 3. www.ihsa.org/Resources/SportsMedicine/ConcussionManagement/ConcussionResources.aspx (concussions) Concussion information is available from the Ill. Elementary School Assoc. at: www.iesa.org/activities/concussion.asp. DRAFT

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